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Fox attack
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Dragonfly


Posts: 2
Joined: Aug 2011
Post: #1
12-08-2011 03:55 PM

I am in Forest Hill - just off Devonshire - and actually witnessed my cat being mawled by a fox in the early hours of the morning on Sat. By the time I got to my cat he was already dead. The fox returned though several times looking for the body! The RSPCA deny that this happens although when I contacted Celia Hammond from whom I adopted the cat they acknowledged this was an emerging trend. If you have been unfortunate enough to have this experience or seen anything of this nature please let us know... Dragonfly.

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Elizabeth25


Posts: 212
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #2
12-08-2011 06:58 PM

Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss.

Three years ago my cat came home with a bloody gash on his head, that I always suspected was a fox. I have no proof, but it seemed a bit too deep for it to have come from a fight with another cat.

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Poppy9560


Posts: 273
Joined: Aug 2008
Post: #3
13-08-2011 11:15 AM

I am so sorry to hear that Crying
condolences

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Jane_D


Posts: 189
Joined: Jan 2010
Post: #4
13-08-2011 08:56 PM

How very shocking for you, and terrible for your cat. I'm so sorry. Thank you for the warning. I'm going to look into ways of keeping foxes out of a garden and will report back if I find anything useful.

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oryx


Posts: 205
Joined: Nov 2007
Post: #5
14-08-2011 12:33 AM

Sorry to hear about your cat, Dragonfly - must've been awful.

Plenty of foxes near us (close to Blythe Hill Fields) so will bear in mind the warning.Sad

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Tersie


Posts: 272
Joined: Feb 2007
Post: #6
14-08-2011 10:36 AM

Hi Dragonfly,

sorry to hear that - terrible news. I see foxes all the time in my road (Gabriel Street) I worry about the cats on this road. There was talk somewhere on the forum about a fox cull, if this becomes more of a problem maybe the local authorities would look to do something.

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brian


Posts: 2,002
Joined: Apr 2005
Post: #7
14-08-2011 01:56 PM

Surely likely the foxes have been in SE23 before the pussies.

Cat owners do not seem to mind their cats ravaging birds and rodents , but when the boot is on the other claw !

Surely domestic pussies are an alien species to our land. If I have that wrong many apologies.


Brian

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Jane_D


Posts: 189
Joined: Jan 2010
Post: #8
14-08-2011 03:20 PM

I'm sure you are right, Brian, that cats are an alien species in this country, and it is true that they reek havoc of their own on local wildlife.
But when a cat is a dearly loved member of your household, you do want to protect it.

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spud


Posts: 65
Joined: Nov 2007
Post: #9
15-08-2011 12:51 PM

Almost feeling a kind of warped admiration for Brian at this point as he peruses a discussion about local wildlife and concurs that, once again,the key issue is the undesirable effects of immigration. That really is monomania beyond the call of duty...

Kittens? They come over here eating our mice... Country. Hell. Handbasket. etc etc

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Tersie


Posts: 272
Joined: Feb 2007
Post: #10
15-08-2011 01:27 PM

Fair point Brian! It is survival of the fittest in our big bad world. But I agree with Jane, a cat is a treasured pet and you will do all you can to protect it. Nothing wrong folk keeping an eye and ear out for things like this happening. If someones pet is being mauled by a fox or any animal is being mauled for that matter I would hope that neighbours would try and stop said mauling.

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brian


Posts: 2,002
Joined: Apr 2005
Post: #11
15-08-2011 03:55 PM

Jane and Tersie

I quite agree

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Dragonfly


Posts: 2
Joined: Aug 2011
Post: #12
15-08-2011 07:07 PM

Brian
I did say feral cat ie this was not a domestic 'pussie'. Feral cats and dogs have definetly been around as long as foxes. Neither am I anti foxes infact hand reared a cub a few years ago and I have seen cats playing in the garden with foxes. This brings me onto my next point which is that both cats and foxes are predators and therefore both eat rodents and birds and up until recently not each other. Dragonfly

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roz


Posts: 1,796
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #13
18-08-2011 06:41 AM

The advice I've always had was that cats and foxes were an equal match for each other but foxes were usually more cowardly so I never had any qualms in letting our cats out at night. My elderly cat ambushed a fox in our garden by hiding in a bush and jumping out at him with a swipe and he ran off. She was bitten once however and vet concluded it was either an enormous dog or a fox due to the predicted jaw dimensios. However they are becoming more brave and there are so many proven incidents around of their attacking young children, so things are clearly changing.

I dont see how cats can be protected from foxes however. They are a law onto themselves however it seems that some sort of deterrent is needed, but not sure what.

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movingsouth


Posts: 35
Joined: Feb 2011
Post: #14
18-08-2011 07:11 PM

sorry about your loss, how awful

Along the line of what Roz says...
Just a few nights ago I went out in the front garden and was playing with the cat when a fox stopped at the gate peeping in

My immediate thought was "get the cat in safe" but no chance, he had already run toward the intruder and chased him off

So proud of the cat, me

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Jane2


Posts: 221
Joined: Jan 2007
Post: #15
06-09-2011 05:14 PM

Have been meaning to reply to this sooner sorry. I am sorry to hear about this Dragonfly.

There are posters up on the trees on Vancouver / Marler / Hurstbourne Roads at the moment about an alleged dog attack on a cat on Marler Road. The poster describes that their cat was attacked by a dog in the night, and only found in the morning, and had to be put down. The owner obviously didn't see the incident if the cat was only found in the morning, so maybe the vet surmised that it was a dog attack. I wonder if it could have been a fox too?

There is a phone number on the poster asking if anyone has any more information about the incident.

Sorry cat owners don't want to alarm you just thought I should post this as it struck me as it just struck me as fairly similar to the incident that Dragonfly describes, although not in the same area of FH.

Dragonfly if you want me to I can jot down the phone number and PM you.

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